Learning New Things

I had the privilege of being a guest speaker to a group of kindergartners this week. The topic was teeth and I really enjoyed putting together some information, activity books, and dental “goodies” for the kids. The class was almost entirely boys except for one lone girl – poor thing. What I didn’t count on was the things I would learn from them. Here are a few examples:

In response to my questions:

What do we use our teeth for?
B1: Well, birds have beaks that they use to pull strings and then make a nest. They have beaks like this (hand demonstration of beak). (This was actually a MUCH longer explanation – I just can’t remember it all :)
Me: (trying desperately to salvage something from this answer) So, it’s kind of like how we chew our food.
B1: They use their beaks to get string.
Me: Okay.

What do you think teeth are made of?
B2: Metal.

What are some healthy snacks?
B3: Cookies.

What did we say teeth are made of?
B2: Metal.

Oh well…I tried.

And a few general educational statements & questions:

B3: (putting his hand on his forehead after I explained that enamel is the strongest material in the body) This is the strongest bone. Does it have teeth?
B4: We have teeth in our noses.
B5: I have green mint and blue mint toothpaste.
B1: Can I sing you a song? (then proceeded to sing an entire song about how teddy bears are the best friends of all)

It was quite a class period – lots of fun and very funny.